Fire Prevention Week is is at the beginning of October, and young students all around the country will be learning about the importance of fire safety and fire prevention. Whether you have your own classroom or are teaching your children at home, it is important to teach your children how to prevent fires and also what to do if a fire breaks out unexpectedly. We’ve partnered with WittyWe to share 5 key components we like to include in a fire saftey lesson for little learners. Below each concept we’ve also added some simple ways to make the lesson memorable for kids. Often if we practice beforehand in a calm state kids are better equipped to handle emergency situations.
Incorporating instructional videos into lessons can also be a great way to get kids engaged in a new topic. We recommend kicking off your fire safety lesson with the fire prevention resources available on WittyWe.com. Then build on the information learned there and include these five important points for early learners.
FIRE SAFETY LESSONS FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD
1) Keep hands off of matches, lighters or anything fire related. Ask an adult to help you if you need to light a candle or to heat something up. Use flashlights in the dark if needed instead of candles, unless supervised by an adult.
Make it memorable: Bring in objects that are safe to touch and objects that are not safe to touch. Use pictures instead of objects if you prefer. As a group talk about each of the objects and sort those that are safe to touch and those that are not safe to touch.
2) It is fun to roast marshmallows, cook hotdogs, and sit around a camp fire, but always make sure to stay at at least an arm’s length distance when sitting around a fire or cooking over a grill.
Make it memorable: Make a pretend camp fire, and practice staying an arm’s length away. This is a great component to add into an early childhood camping or summer theme, too.
3) If your clothes catch on fire remember to STOP, DROP and ROLL as it will take away the oxygen that keeps the fire burning. Below is a diagram from the WittyWe video we watched as part of our fire safety study. We love being able to freeze the video to reinforce important details.
Make it memorable: Often we take time to discuss STOP, DROP, and ROLL, but the idea will stick with kids much better if you actually give them the chance to practice. Make it fun by singing a little song as you do!
4) If a fire starts in the house or at school, go to the nearest exit and wait for the rest of your group in a safe place outside. If a door is hot, NEVER go through it. If you are on the ground floor try a window instead, or wait for help as far away from the door as possible.
Make it memorable: Draw a class or family map showing where to go in the event of a fire. Take time to practice going to that location.
5) NEVER go back inside a burning building! Make sure you or an adult call 911, and the firefighters will be there quickly to help stop the fire using water and other types of extinguishers depending on the kind of fire it is.
Make it memorable: Use a pretend phone to practice dialing 911. Also be sure to mention the only times kids are allowed to dial 911.
GET A FREE TRIAL OF WITTYWE
There’s a lot more to WittyWe than fire safety resources. You’ll also find information about a ton of other interesting topics that your kids will enjoy!
WittyWe offers over 60 online courses for kids on school curriculum topics from Kindergarten through 9th grade. Our favorite feature on WittyWe is that the lessons are animated and are engaging to all ages. They even come paired with interactive quizzes and online summaries. Here’s a peek at the video we watched to go along with our fire safety lessons.
Right now WittyWe is offering a free 90 day trial for Classroom Teachers, Homeschoolers and Parents. Pop in and sign up today.
Fire prevention week may fall in October, but it is never too early or too late to teach and encourage fire safety to young children. Online resources are one of the great tools we can use to help supplement our Fire Prevention curriculum. Let’s work together to educate our children in preventing fires, and also empower them to know what to do in the event of a fire breaks out.